1. Field of Invention
This invention relates to Mosquito Incinerator equipment that attracts, captures, destroys and incinerates mosquitoes.
2. Description of Prior Art
Mosquitoes are a plague to the world. They bite people, creating welts and allergies. They force people to go indoors when those involved would prefer to stay outdoors. Also, mosquitoes are a serious vector for the transmission of diseases, some of which may be fatal. Worldwide, mosquito-borne diseases kill more people than any other single factor.
There are many devices that have been invented for the purpose of eradicating mosquitoes. Some of these devices have been brought to market. Most such devices do not eradicate or kill mosquitoes, except by chance. One such ubiquitous device is a xe2x80x9czapperxe2x80x9d in which a light is supposed to attract the mosquitoes that are then killed by electrocution. In actuality, the zapper appears to mainly kill insects other than mosquitoes.
Another device which claims to kill mosquitoes is the xe2x80x9cMosquito Killerxe2x80x9d, covered by U.S. Pat. No. 5,595,018. It employs a heating element to raise the temperature of the device, relying solely on the mosquito""s ability to sense heat to find its prey. Heat does attract mosquitoes, but heat is only one of the attractants for mosquitoes. There are other attractants for mosquitoes that, in combination with heat provide substantially increased attraction. The device also suffers from three drawbacks. First, it consumes large amounts of electrical energy because the air that is heated is immediately forced out of the device and all of its thermal energy is lost to the atmosphere. Second, it is not practical to add chemical attractant to the exiting air because of the airflow design. Third, the price of the device, (about $500), is high enough to be beyond the financial means or objectives of many people.
Still another device utilizes the heat of an electric light to attract mosquitoes and once these insects are near the device, a fan that is internal to the device, sucks the insects in and destroys them. This device is priced lower, ($50 to $100), depending on the model, but this device also has the drawback that it uses only heat to attract the insects.
Still another device is the Mosquito Magnet that uses heat, carbon dioxide and a chemical attractant in combination to attract mosquitoes to the device. The device captures the insects in a bag from which they must be disposed periodically. This device has proven to be effective, but suffers from three other drawbacks. First, it is large and heavy. Second, it consumes a substantial quantity of propane and it is reported to require a new tank of propane every three weeks when run continuously. Third, it is costly, (in the neighborhood of $1,000 per unit).
Much is known about what attracts mosquitoes. For one, there are a wide variety of mosquitoes and each variety has its own particular characteristics and each variety responds to attractants in its own way. There are more than 270 different chemical attractants for mosquitoes. Nevertheless, entomologists agree on certain attractants. Body heat is certainly one attractant. Carbon dioxide is another and the entomologist often uses dry ice, (frozen carbon dioxide), when seeking to trap mosquitoes. Chemical attractants, such as lactic acid and octenol also attract mosquitoes, however the attraction is greatly enhanced by the presence of carbon dioxide.
A study of the take-off rate of mosquitoes in clean air showed that the addition of 0.2% carbon dioxide resulted in an increased rate of take-off Another study showed that a blend of 0.11% carbon dioxide and 85 ug/ml of lactic acid induced a peak rate. The study concluded that carbon dioxide and lactic acid together resulted in the highest rate of take-off.
The present invention employs the simultaneous presence of heat, carbon dioxide and a chemical attractant to lure the mosquitoes into the device. The device then captures, kills and incinerates the insects.
One significant novel feature of the present invention is that it recirculates most of the air that it heats, thereby saving electrical energy. Another novel feature is that it produces carbon dioxide by incinerating the mosquitoes and by burning a portion of the chemical attractant. Still another novel feature is a built-in reservoir for the chemical attractant together with the means for distributing the attractant in combination with water vapor and carbon dioxide to the atmosphere that surrounds the device.
Finally, what is important for the widespread use of the present invention is that it is compact, light in weight and can be produced at an affordable price.
This invention provides a system and device for destroying mosquitoes. The device has a housing, preferably of plastic, that encloses a small fan for moving air, a tank for containing a chemical attractant for mosquitoes and an electric heater that heats the air and, at the same time incinerates the mosquitoes. The fan shreds mosquitoes that are attracted to the device and that enter it. Most of the air that the fan moves is recirculated in order to carry the mosquitoes to their destruction. A small portion of the recirculated air is passed over a high temperature electric heater that maintains the device at a desired, controlled and elevated temperature and that incinerates the insects. Another small portion of the recirculated air is delivered to the atmosphere, carrying with it carbon dioxide and the chemical attractant.
One object of the invention is to provide the maximum attraction for mosquitoes by emitting, in a substantially simultaneous manner, a mixture of carbon dioxide, water vapor and a chemical attractant so as to closely mimic the substances of the human body that attract mosquitoes.
Another object of the invention is to maintain its internal temperature high enough so that the skin temperature of the device mimics closely the skin temperature of the human body. The device provides a means for controlling and regulating this temperature to achieve a skin temperature that is most attractive to the mosquitoes in the region in which the device is being used.
Still another object of this invention is to incinerate the mosquitoes such that their disposal is not required. The process of incineration has the additional benefit in that it produces carbon dioxide to help in attracting mosquitoes. The more mosquitoes there are in a region, the more will enter the device and the more carbon dioxide will be produced. The device responds to an increased presence of mosquitoes by increasing its emissions of attractants.
Still another object of this invention is to conserve electrical energy by recirculating most of the air that is moved by the fan.
Still another object of this invention is to provide an integral container to store a chemical attractant for mosquitoes from which container the attractant is automatically dispensed so that the unit may operate unattended for an extended period of time.
Still another object of this invention is to provide a device that is compact, light in weight and low in cost, the latter being deemed essential for the widespread use of the apparatus.
Other objects and a fuller understanding of the invention will become apparent by referring to the following description and claims, taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings.